Hutchinson seeks $7.4 million to open 200 new prison bedsAssociated Press HOT SPRINGS — Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Monday said he wants to tap an additional $7.4 million from Arkansas reserve funds to open 200 more prison beds to help ease the backlog of state inmates housed at local jails. The Republican governor told the Arkansas Sheriffs Association at the group’s summer meeting that he will ask lawmakers to approve the funding to open the beds in about 18 months at a Pine Bluff prison facility. “I’m...

Fort Smith schools consider ending Rebel mascot, ‘Dixie’Associated Press LITTLE ROCK — A school board in northwestern Arkansas is considering whether to drop a high school mascot and direct that its band no longer play its “Dixie” fight song in the wake of a racially motivated shooting at a historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina, last month. Fort Smith School board members have said a recurring discussion of changing the fight song and Rebel mascot reignited after the shooting at t...

Attorney general’s office rejects 5 pot proposalsAssociated Press CONWAY — The Arkansas attorney general’s office has rejected five proposed ballot titles that would have asked voters to legalize marijuana for various purposes. But Robert Reed of Dennard said he isn’t giving up and is planning to appeal the most recent denials, on July 20, by Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, who cited ambiguities in two of the proposals Reed submitted. Reed told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that he suffers...

Boozman honors Russellville native WyattSPECIAL TO THE COURIER WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) delivered a speech on the Senate floor Friday in honor of the service and sacrifice of Russellville native Staff Sgt. David Wyatt, a U.S. Marine who was shot and killed when a gunman attacked a military facility in Chattanooga, Tenn. Staff Sgt. Wyatt was laid to rest Friday at the Chattanooga National Cemetery. The following are Boozman’s remarks as prepared for delivery: “The...

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SPECIAL TO THE COURIERThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Probe continues after 2-year-old found dead in carAssociated Press HOT SPRINGS — Authorities continue to investigate the cause of death for a 2-year-old found dead in a car in Hot Springs. Jeff Saunders, a shift commander with the Hot Springs Fire Department, says the department and EMS workers responded to a call around 3:20 p.m. Friday concerning a dead child in a vehicle in a residential neighborhood. Saunders says the manner of death may not be known until Monday. TV station KTHV reported...

ASCP announces state Capitol will close on weekendsFOR THE COURIER LITTLE ROCK — Due to ongoing construction and concern for the safety of visitors, the Arkansas State Capitol Police are advising the public that the Capitol building will be closed on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays beginning this Saturday, July 25. The closure will remain in effect through the fall as construction work is completed. The Capitol is currently undergoing renovations, including on the north end of the building in...

Eureka Springs to keep anti-discrimination ordinanceAssociated Press LITTLE ROCK — The mayor of a northwest Arkansas city on Tuesday said a measure banning discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity will continue being enforced despite a new state law aimed at prohibiting such ordinances. Eureka Springs Mayor Robert “Butch” Berry said the city has no plans to back down from its ordinance, approved by voters in May. It bans agencies and businesses from discriminating against ...

Ex-officers charged in youth’s arm injuryAssociated Press LITTLE ROCK — Two former law enforcement officers in Yell County face felony charges for their involvement in breaking a 13-year-old boy’s arm at a juvenile detention center last year. Former Danville police officer Timothy Spears and former Yell County sheriff’s deputy Michael Spears are each charged with second-degree battery in connection with the March 2014 altercation with the boy that resulted in a severe fracture of his...

Arkansas unemployment declines to 5.7% in JuneAssociated Press LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas Department of Workforce Services says Arkansas’ unemployment rate last month dropped slightly to 5.7 percent. The agency said Tuesday that the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate declined one-tenth of a percentage point in June from 5.8 percent in May. The national jobless rate declined two-tenths of a percentage point, from 5.5 percent in May to 5.3 percent in June. Arkansas’ civilian labor force ...

Permit approved for alcohol sales at Arkansas StateJONESBORO — A permit has been approved allowing alcohol to be served at some events on the Arkansas State University campus. ASU says Arkansas Alcohol Beverage Control Board Director Bud Roberts approved the permit for the NEA Sports Club of Jonesboro on Monday, conditional on a final inspection of the facilities. ASU’s Board of Trustees in April approved a 10-year lease agreement with the nonprofit sports club allowing it to serve alcohol to ...

New laws aimed at helping domestic violence victimsAssociated Press LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas law enforcement officers will be required to ask domestic violence victims a series of questions to determine their risk of being killed, and must provide the victims a card with information about assistance and their rights under new laws taking effect this week. State lawmakers said Monday that the measures, which take effect on Wednesday after being approved by the Legislature earlier this year, are a...

Arkansas governor temporarily moves guard recruitersLITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson is temporarily closing the state’s nine storefront National Guard recruitment centers as officials review their security following last week’s attacks on two military facilities in Tennessee. Hutchinson on Monday signed an executive order moving Guard members from the centers to their nearest armory or wing while Adjutant General Major General Mark Berry works on recommendations for improving security...

Don’t be scammed by your ‘favorite grandson’LITTLE ROCK — Scammers are reviving an old ploy to swindle the elderly out of their money. The Arkansas Attorney General’s Office Public Protection Department has recently seen an uptick in reports of the “favorite grandson” scam. These con artists prey on the elderly by calling and identifying themselves as the individual’s favorite grandson or other close relative, who is in serious trouble or has been in an accident and needs money wired ri...

Governor directs Adjutant General Berry to arm full-time military personnel, fly flag half-staffLITTLE ROCK – In the wake of the shootings Thursday at the Navy and Marine reserve center in Chattanooga, Tenn., Governor Asa Hutchinson has authorized Arkansas National Guard Adjutant General Mark Berry to arm full-time military personnel. In addition, the Governor has issued a proclamation ordering the state flag of Arkansas to be flown at half-staff from sunrise to sunset on Monday, July 20, 2015 as a mark of respect and as an expression of...

Sheriff’s deputy hurt while on patrolDANVILLE — Sheriff Bill Gilkey announced the arrest Sunday of a Dardanelle man on charges stemming from an incident in which a deputy was allegedly injured. Richard Allen Via, 40, was taken into custody early Sunday after a deputy sheriff on routine patrol allegedly discovered Via standing in a traffic lane of State Highway 7 outside of Dardanelle, according to Chief Deputy John Foster. The deputy reported Via refused to comply with commands t...

A&P commissioners give grant to Equestrian ZoneThe Russellville Advertising and Promotion Commission approved a $1,999 grant for an Equestrian Zone bike poker run scheduled for Sept. 12 in Pope and Johnson counties. Commissioners also approved a $500 community grant for Summer Sweeney, a country artist who will perform Sept. 19-20 at the Pope County Fair; and a $500 community grant for the Russellville Football Booster Club’s 5K Glo Run on Aug. 6 at Russellville Junior High School. The com...

Firm seeks more info, stalls funds for stateAssociated Press LITTLE ROCK — A telecommunications company wants more information before it submits paperwork that officials say has put a hold on more than $15 million in federal funding for Arkansas schools. CenturyLink officials question whether the state’s procurement process for school broadband upgrades complied with federal rules. Jeff Jones, CenturyLink’s market development manager, said it seeks additional information from the Federa...

Arkansas lawmakers criticize Iran nuclear dealAssociated Press LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas’ all-Republican congressional delegation roundly criticized a nuclear deal announced Tuesday between Iran and world powers, with freshman U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton calling it a “grievous, dangerous mistake.” Cotton, an Army veteran who authored an open letter to Iran in March signed by 46 other senators about the nuclear negotiations, vowed to fight the agreement that would curb Iran’s nuclear program in exch...

Benton County search for man on the run ends in MissouriAssociated Press BENTONVILLE — A four-day search for a 39-year-old man on the run from law enforcement in Benton County has ended in Missouri. Officers had pursued the suspect since Friday evening, when authorities say deputies attempted to serve him a warrant for failure to pay child support and a parole violation. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports the suspect fled from an apartment complex and led police on a chase across a golf course b...

Septic truck driver killed in crash in JacksonvilleAssociated Press JACKSONVILLE — Authorities say a Redfield man was killed when the septic truck he was driving crashed in Jacksonville. Arkansas State Police say 49-year-old Dennis Brasher died as a result of the crash on Monday. A Lonoke man who was riding in the truck was injured and is hospitalized in undisclosed condition. Pulaski County deputies who responded to the crash say Brasher died after being removed from the vehicle. A state poli...